Closer Look: Panther Coffee in Wynwood

Joel and Leticia Pollock and their vintage. Perfekt, 10 kilo coffee roaster roaster made in Germany in 1927

With 19 contestants buying in, there's nearly $200 at stake. All of that just for drinking some coffee. The slurping was sure to get serious. Which is exactly how Panther Coffee's business prospects look these days. A few years ago, even this rather innocuous tasting competition would have seemed out of place in Miami. The specialty coffee scene here was minute. But in 2011, a coffee-roasting triumvirate made its Magic City debut: Panther Coffee, Alaska Coffee Roasting, and Eternity Coffee Roasters.Since then, Panther Coffee — which soon emerged as the cadre's strongest — has earned mad street cred. The New York Times has extolled it three times. American Express featured the coffee shop in a commercial during the 2012 Academy Awards. Finally, earlier this year, Panther Coffee won the prestigious Good Food Award, a national prize for responsibly produced foods.Read the full story on Panther Coffee in Wynwood.